There are a couple of hurdles to get through, but the Nuggets are expected to have 2014 second-round draft pick Nikola Jokic signed and ready to roll prior to the Nuggets’ summer league in Las Vegas in July.

The 20-year-old Jokic, a 6-11, 253-pound Serbian center, played last season for KK Mega Vizura in the Adriatic League. He led the team in points (15.4), rebounds (9.2) and steals per game (1.5). He also averaged 3.5 assists for the team.

His play has been a constant source of interest and excitement in the Nuggets front office and scouting department. A high basketball IQ and a game that stretches out to the 3-point line — he shot 34.6 percent from there during the season — has the organization eager to see him against NBA-caliber players.

With a deal on the horizon, the Nuggets will get that opportunity.

Wilson Chandler contract guaranteed.

Wilson Chandler’s contract for next season is now fully guaranteed; the time for the Nuggets to release him at a fraction of the cost has now expired.

We don’t know what Nuggets general manager Tim Connelly and head coach Brian Shaw ultimately have in store in putting their stamp on reworking the Nuggets roster.

But we have clues.

Those clues came in the first few weeks after both were hired in 2014. Shaw talked about playing inside, out. He talked about playing smashmouth basketball. Yet those are things his teams have never been able to get to, in either year of his coaching tenure.

But that won’t be the case for long. The Nuggets will get to work on constructing a team that plays that way, because if Shaw is going to go down he’s going to go down playing the type of basketball he wants to play.

There’s not one surefire way to makeover a roster. In this case, using what little we know we’ve blended free agency and the draft in a way that checks off many of the boxes.

So, for entertainment purposes only, this is how the Nuggets can get from here — 20-33 at the All Star break — to something different, and better, in the future.

The NBA announced Monday that it had renewed its television deals with ESPN and TNT for nine years, through the 2024-25 season. The league’s annual revenue from the agreements is expected to be upward of $2.6 billion, a dramatic increase over the $930 million it received in its previous deals.

A framework for a new “over-the-top” offering for Internet and mobile streaming

10 additional regular-season games for ESPN or ABC, bringing the total to 100

10 more exclusive regular-season windows

More team appearances

Live national rights to summer league and D-League games

750 new hours of NBA content

Aside from the windfall the league will receive with the massive deals, much has been made of the agreements’ impact on negotiations for the next collective bargaining agreement, which could come as soon as 2017, when the players and owners can opt out of the current agreement. It will also significantly affect the salary cap for 2016-17 and the players’ piece of the basketball-related income pie.

Starting late Sunday, when news of the NBA’s deals were first reported, speculation ran rampant on just how much these new agreements will transform the league:Read more…

Nuggets forward Darrell Arthur, beginning the last season of his contract, would love to make Denver his permanent home. (Hyoung Chang, The Denver Post)

Darrell Arthur’s contract. All things considered, Darrell Arthur would like to stay.

The Nuggets forward is entering the final season of a contract he signed when he played for the Memphis Grizzlies. Traded to the Nuggets last summer, Arthur will be a unrestricted free agent at the end of this season. He’ll be paid $3.4 million this season.

Asked if he wanted to in Denver he said, “Oh yeah, for sure. My family loves it here. My mom was just up here for a couple of weeks and she just loves it – loves the atmosphere, loves the people here. I love the organization, everything. It’s a family organization, they welcome you with open arms. I definitely would like this to be home.”

Kenneth Faried, right, played for Mike Krzyzewski during Team USA’s run in the FIBA World Cup this past summer. (Alvaro Barrientos, The Associated Press)

At Nuggets media day on Monday, it was clear something was different about Kenneth Faried. And it wasn’t just the massive chunk of gold around his neck. He was always a confident guy, but not like this. Not with the determination and eagerness to continue to prove people wrong.

He spoke about how the medal was a bit of validation for him and how it proved to himself, and others, that he can be one of the game’s top power forwards. But as he spoke, it was also clear that this outlook was a result of the summer and his time with Coach Mike Krzyzewski.

Under Krzyzewski, Faried learned how to lead.

“It was weird, Coach K was talking to me and said I needed to be that leader in practice and on the court, he needs me to bring that energy to be that leader that I should be,” Faried said. “And to hear it from one of the greatest coaches in the world, a Hall of Famer … it just registered like, ‘Hey, you can do anything, Kenneth. You can go out there and win a gold. You can go out there and compete with these guys, and in the NBA, you can do the same thing.'”

“You need that from a coach. You need a coach to have faith in you, and if he doesn’t, that’s a problem, because it means he doesn’t want you there or want you to be a part of the bigger picture or bigger plan for the team.”

Faried said Krzyzewski called him before the team arrived in Spain for the FIBA World Cup to give him a fair warning that he would not be a starter. Faried accepted that, and was mentally prepared to come off the bench.

But come practice, Krzyzewski threw him in with the starters. No heads up. No anything.

“He sat me down and said, ‘Look I need you to be the guy you are. Don’t come in here thinking you have to take a back seat to any of these guys. Lead by example, lead by your words. If you say something, I’m going to back it up,'” Faried said.

Earning the respect of Krzyzewski was a huge confidence boost for Faried.Read more…

The Nuggets already have 13 players on guaranteed deals, with Quincy Miller and Erick Green on partially guaranteed contracts. That means those two, along with training camp invites Marcus Williams and Joe Alexander (and possibly Gee, now) will be fighting for the final two spots. The team can carry 17 players on their roster in the preseason, but they must whittle it down to 15 before the start of the regular season.

Alonzo Gee is expected to be a #Nuggets training camp invite, along with Marcus Williams & Jerrelle Benimon

“(Mozgov) played with (Cavaliers coach) David Blatt on the Russian national team,” Windhorst said. “A starter-quality guy who can defend a little bit, makes about $3 million. Then these non-guaranteed contracts — (F) Erik Murphy, (G) John Lucas, and (F Malcolm) Thomas — that’s who they got these guys to trade for, but Denver’s not giving (Mozgov) up. That’s the guy (the Cavs) want to get their hands on. That would be a nice addition, but they haven’t been able to do that deal so far.

“You’re not going to hold a parade if you got him like you are with Love,” Windhorst added, “but that’s the guy they’re looking at. They haven’t been able to do the deal yet. They’ve been trying to trade for him for the last six to eight weeks and they just haven’t been able to get it done.”Read more…

Sim Bhullar, then a center with New Mexico, towers above his teammates during a huddle in a game against the University of Denver men’s basketball team on Saturday, March 2, 2013, at Magness Arena. (Denver Post file)

By The Associated Press

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sim Bhullar became the first player of Indian descent to sign a contract with an NBA team Friday, inking a deal to join the Sacramento Kings in training camp. Terms of the contract were not disclosed.

“I’ve long believed that India is the next great frontier for the NBA, and adding a talented player like Sim only underscores the exponential growth basketball has experienced in that nation,” said Kings owner Vivek Ranadive, the league’s first Indian-born majority owner. “While Sim is the first player of Indian descent to sign with an NBA franchise, he represents one of many that will emerge from that region as the game continues to garner more attention and generate ever-increasing passion among a new generation of Indian fans.”

The 7-foot-5, 360-pound Bhullar was born in Toronto and played two seasons for New Mexico State, where he averaged 10.2 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2.9 blocks. He twice earned Western Athletic Conference tournament MVP honors and led the Aggies to back-to-back NCAA tournaments.

But it doesn’t end there. The reported amount of money thrown around in this Clippers deal is simply staggering:

• Donald Sterling paid about $12.5 million for the team in 1981. According to Forbes, the Clippers are valued at $575 million, though some estimated the team to be worth around $700 million. Sterling sold the team for $2 billion. Minus the combined federal and state capital gains rate for high earners in California (33.3 percent), Sterling will lose about $466 million, leaving him with $1.334 million. And since the Clippers are likely spared from paying ordinary corporate taxes (if the team, which was owned by the family trust, is an S corporation, that is), Sterling is looking at an approximate $1.321 billion profit.

That’s a lot of zeroes for a guy was supposedly “punished” for his actions.Read more…

Chauncey Billups is reportedly interested in playing for the Cavaliers. (Kathryn Scott Osler, The Denver Post)

Retirement does not appear to be on Chauncey Billups’ mind.

The Colorado legend and former Denver Nugget reportedly worked out for the Cavaliers on Wednesday and is “interested in playing there,” but no offer was made.

The website WaitingForNextYear.com first reported that Billups spent Tuesday in Cleveland with assistant coach Tyronn Lue and had dinner with the Cavs’ new head coach, David Blatt, and general manager David Griffin.

Yahoo Sports’ Marc J. Spears later Tweeted:

Free agent guard Chauncey Billups also worked out for the Cavaliers today & is interested in playing there,a source said. No offer was made.

“The deal is done but not done,” Windhorst said. “The teams have agreed, but they can’t say they have agreed and they can’t agree because we’re in this weird moratorium period, because you can’t Andrew Wiggins until the 23rd of this month.

“So, between now and then — which is what? 19 days? — could something happen? Could a team come in with a trade that maybe Minnesota doesn’t see? Yes, it could happen. Therefore, it is not done. But, essentially before the papers have been signed, there is a handshake agreement: Kevin Love to the Cavs, Andrew Wiggins to the Timberwolves, and I believe Thaddeus Young will end up in Minnesota, either as part of a separate deal or as part of a three-way deal. Possibly Anthony Bennett, who’s on the Cavs right now, could get re-routed to Philadelphia in part of a deal for Thaddeus Young, there will be draft picks involved.

“But essentially what you need to know if you’re an NBA fan: Kevin Love’s going to be on the Cavs barring anything unforeseen, and Andrew Wiggins, the No. 1 overall pick, is going to be in Minnesota.” Read more…

Tuesday morning, hours after the NBA’s free agency period began, Ron Klempner, the acting executive director of the NBA players’ association, sent a letter to all players encouraging them to take advantage of a new rule in the collective bargaining agreement and receive their salary over 18 months.

“An 18-month payment schedule for 2016-17 will allow a player to continue receiving paychecks throughout the 2017-18 season, even if the players are locked out that season,” Klempner wrote.

Kenneth Faried shoots over Jeff Withey of the New Orleans Pelicans in a game at Pepsi Center last season. (John Leyba, The Denver Post)

The Nuggets may have finished with their worst record (36-46) in a decade and failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 2003, but they did rank in the top 10 among NBA teams in one notable category: profitability.

According to Grantland’s Zach Lowe, who acquired and verified an official memo the league sent out to all 30 teams in June, the Nuggets benefited nicely from the league’s revenue-sharing to rank No. 8 among teams in projected profitability for 2013-14, despite an otherwise forgettable season. An exact figure was not mentioned in the report.

Below are the top teams ranked in order projected profitability, followed by others mentioned in Lowe’s report:

Darrell Arthur has a player option for next season. (John Raoux, The Associated Press)

If it’s up to Darrell Arthur, he’ll be back in a Nuggets uniform next season.

The good news for him is it is his choice.

Arthur, a reserve power forward who was one of the Nuggets’ best defensive players during the 2013-14 season has a player option worth about $3.5 million for next season. Barring a contract extension, he’ll be an unrestricted free agent next summer.

Tim Connelly, the new executive vice president of basketball operations for the Denver Nuggets. (Provided by New Orleans Pelicans)

The Nuggets have hired Tim Connelly as their new general manager, team president Josh Kroenke told The Denver Post Monday morning. Connelly’s official title is executive vice president of basketball operations. The New Orleans Pelicans assistant general manager will take over for Masai Ujiri, who left to take over as general manager in Toronto.

Meanwhile, Indiana Pacers assistant Brian Shaw will interview Tuesday for the Nuggets’ coaching vacancy, an NBA source told The Denver Post on Monday morning. Memphis Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins, the other top candidate, will interview on Wednesday, as Denver looks to replace the fired George Karl.

George Karl looked more like Ty Lawson on Tuesday, zipping past the media, refusing to talk about looming issues. The Nuggets coach attended the team’s draft workout, but didn’t want to talk about his future, which is uncertain. Yes, he’s the coach of the Nuggets with one more year on a contract. But he’s also a possible candidate for the Clippers job, though so are other qualified coaches. As of now, Karl hasn’t become an official interview candidate.

Memphis coach Lionel Hollins, who has played L.A. in the previous two postseason, reached out to the team about the job, according to the L.A. Times. The team is also looking at Indiana assistant Brian Shaw and possible former Cavaliers coach Byron Scott, who is an L.A. native.

Jeff Van Gundy, the ESPN analyst, was a former candidate, and he said on a conference call Tuesday that the “Clipper job in general is a great job. I think you have seen with their acquisition of players, they have done a good job building their roster. Obviously it’s imperative that they re sign Chris Paul, and it seems like that will happen. They have great practice facility, great arena, a fan base that has really grown and swelled.

The Nuggets spent an significant amount of time today making sure everyone was on the same page to stop a particularly potent shooter – Atlanta guard Kyle Korver.

He is the NBA’s deadliest 3-point shooter, nailing 46.2 percent of his tries this season. He is the kind of player the Nuggets would love to have on their roster to bolster an area that has been lacking this season. The Nuggets are 27th in the NBA in 3-point field goal percentage.

Here’s the kicker: Next season, Korver could be a Nugget.

Think of this in similar terms to the Andre Iguodala saga. The Nuggets had interest in Iguodala, then with Philadelphia, at the trade deadline in 2012 and ended up being part of a trade that brought him to Denver in the summer.

Korver, an unrestricted free agent in his 10th year in the NBA, is expected to be one of the Nuggets top targets in the offseason as the team actively courts players who can fill that shooting void. Denver won’t be the only team looking to gain his services, but if the money is right (Korver makes $5 million this season) the situation might be hard for the sharpshooter, who grew up in Pella, Iowa, to turn down.

Shots figure to be much easier to come by in a system where guard Ty Lawson’s driving is so respected that he sucks defenders into the lane, and other players capable of hitting from long range – Danilo Gallinari, Wilson Chandler, Corey Brewer – make it so that he would be difficult to devote additional resources to slowing just Korver down in the manner that the Nuggets are expected to try tonight.

“You don’t have a lot of pin-down offenses anymore, for some reason the game’s gone to pick-and-roll and away from the execution of a pin-down,” Nuggets coach George Karl said. “You’ve got (J.J.) Reddick and some guys that come off of pin-downs but this kid right now moves without the ball as good as anybody in the NBA, and he will get his opportunity to be the first option in 10-15 minutes of the game that we’re going to have to be responsible and see how he’s shooting it. And then you can’t give them the open three, you can’t give him the ‘oh, what happened’ three. You’ve got to be ready. He’s a big part.”

Korver holds the NBA record for 3-point percentage in a season, hitting 53.6 percent of his tries in the 2009-10 season. That season he played with Utah, the same time current Nuggets center Kosta Koufos was on the Jazz roster.

“He’s an unbelievable shooter, he’s so gifted with that,” Koufos said. “He just has a positive outlook to everything. That’s why he’s been so successful in the league. He’s just been working hard, day-in and day-out.”

Koufos raved about Korver as a teammate.

“He’s great guy,” Koufos said. “He’s what you think of a professional. He comes in, works hard, he’s very motivational, very positive, a great player. He’s one of the better teammates I’ve ever played with.”

Follow Chris Dempsey on Twitter @dempseypost or email him at cdempsey@denverpost.com

CLEVELAND – If Nuggets coach George Karl is to be believed – more on that in a minute – his organization is in a precarious place as the trade deadline speeds towards the NBA, arriving on Feb. 21.

The Nuggets are in fourth place in the Western Conference, and rising. Their inexperienced players – most notably Kenneth Faried – are improving at a steady rate. There aren’t many expiring contracts to take advantage of, though Timofey Mozgov and Corey Brewer both fit the bill there. Brewer has expressed his desire to stay while Mozgov expressed his desire to play anywhere.

And while Mozgov has been one of the most inquired-about Nuggets, there remains huge question marks as to whether the team will deal anyone at all. Karl emphasized that point after today’s shootaround at Quicken Loans Arena.

Chris Dempsey arrived at The Denver Post in Dec. 2003 after seven years at the Boulder Daily Camera, where he primarily covered the University of Colorado football and men's basketball teams. A University of Colorado-Boulder alumnus, Dempsey covers the Nuggets and also chips in on college sports.